TOPEKA—The 5th Judicial District Nominating Commission will meet at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, August 11, to interview nominees to fill a district judge vacancy  
   
The vacancy will be created when Chief Judge Merlin Wheeler retires September 3.   
 
The 5th Judicial District is composed of Chase and Lyon counties.  
  
Public interviews    
  
Interviews are open to the public. They will take place at:  
   
Lyon County Courthouse 
Room 201 
420 Commercial St.  
Emporia, KS  
   
The interview schedule will be announced once it’s finalized.    
  
The nominees:  

• Douglas Jones, Cottonwood Falls, district magistrate judge, 5th Judicial District; and municipal court judge in Cottonwood Falls 
   

• Laura Miser, Emporia, assistant county attorney, Lyon County Attorney Office
   

• Elizabeth Oliver, Ottawa, county attorney, Anderson County Attorney’s Office; attorney, Oliver Law Office; and adjunct instructor, Neosho County Community College  
   

• Jeremy Dorsey, Emporia, legal counsel, Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services
   

The nominating commission will convene by videoconference at noon Thursday, August 4.  
 
The meeting is open to the public. It will take place via videoconference and will be livestreamed on the Kansas judicial branch YouTube channel.  
  
To comment:  

  
ADA accommodation
  
Any person with a disability who requires accommodation to access the nominating commission meeting should notify the judicial branch ADA coordinator as early as possible:
  
ADA Coordinator    
ADA@kscourts.org  
785-296-2256    
TTY at 711
  
Eligibility requirements
  
Nominees for district judge must be:

• at least 30 years old;
   

• a lawyer admitted to practice in Kansas and engaged in the practice of law for at least five years, whether as a lawyer, judge, or full-time teacher at an accredited law school; and
   

• a resident of the judicial district at the time of taking office and while holding office. 

 
Nominees to the governor 
  
The nominating commission will interview nominees for the district judge position and then select from three to five people whose names will be submitted to the governor to fill the position according to statutory qualification and residency requirements. The governor has 60 days after receiving the names to decide whom to appoint. 
  
Term of office  
 
After serving one year in office, a new judge must stand for a retention vote in the next general election to remain in the position. If retained, the incumbent will serve a four-year term.
 
Nominating commission  
 
The 5th Judicial District Nominating Commission consists of Supreme Court Justice Melissa Standridge as the nonvoting chair; Leigh Ann Crofoot of Cottonwood Falls; Greg Bachman, Michael Helbert, Deanne Korsak, and Robert Symmonds of Emporia; Cynthia Hoedel of Matfield Green; Stephen Atherton of Olpe; and Charles Rayl of Strong City.